


loving you is easy

by hazeyhoney



Category: Men's Hockey RPF
Genre: Keith Tkachuk is a good and supportive dad in this, M/M, the rest of the Tkachuks and Draisaitls show up briefly
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-15
Updated: 2020-12-15
Packaged: 2021-03-11 00:27:01
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,929
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28096125
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/hazeyhoney/pseuds/hazeyhoney
Summary: it’s been years of loving Matthew.....
Relationships: Leon Draisaitl/Matthew Tkachuk
Comments: 4
Kudos: 97





	loving you is easy

**Author's Note:**

> i don't own any of the people mentioned in this fanfiction  
> if you know any of the people mentioned or even are one of the people mentioned.... please don't read this, for your sake and mine please  
>   
> Leon's adorable dog Bowie is mentioned in this but i completely forgot to include him besides a short mention at the beginning so lets just say while all this was happening he's inside the house napping or something  
>   
> quick summary in the end notes, no tw as far as i'm aware

Loving Matthew was easy. Loving his little cocky smirk and the way he is always extra snuggly in the morning before he had his coffee and the way he said Leon's name was easy. Maybe even the easiest thing he ever did in his life. Loving the Tkachuk family as a whole was easy. They were so different from his own family back in Germany, but somehow they still managed to make him feel like home right after meeting them. It felt easy to have Chantal call him sweetheart and to have Keith call him son and for Taryn and Brady to call him a little bitch when Leon and Matt beat them at whatever game they were playing at the moment. And now it’s been years of loving Matthew, years of feeling at home with the Tkachuks. It just feels logical to think about taking the next step.  
  
They already have their house in Edmonton, the apartment in Calgary (although Matt had been talking about getting a house there as well, more room to house rookies and host team gatherings), as well as the summer house Leon built on Mallorca. They have the cutest dog in the world and enough room for another dog and further in the future, children, if Matthew wanted any.  
  
The only thing missing were some matching bands around their ring fingers. Or maybe not matching but vaguely similar. Or maybe Matthew would prefer it if they get the exact same ring. Or maybe not have any rings at all and instead get tattoos on their ring fingers like some players had.  
  
But Leon doesn't know what Matthew would like, which is why he hadn't bought a ring yet. He wanted to ever since he first fleeting thought of "I want this forever" ran through his mind months ago, but this ring needed to be perfect. It would be with them forever after all. Which is why the ring was only step three on his list. Well, on the list he had crumbled up in his jacket pocket anyways. The one he had scribbled on the hotel room notepad during a road trip one morning after falling asleep on facetime with Matthew and waking up to the call still connected, Matt with wild bed hair drooling onto Leon's pillow (because he liked to sleep with it when Leon was gone since it smelled like him and provided comfort), and thinking _I want to wake up to this every morning_. There was a more detailed list in his head mapping out every tiny partial step between the big steps he wrote down but if any Tkachuk ever found out about that they'd tease him about his germanness again. The written list is simple, no title, no overthinking it, just a reasonable short list of things one should do if they want to ask their "nemesis" if they'd be cool with staying together forever.  
  
**1\. talk to family  
2\. information on Matt? get Taryn to ask about wedding ~~shit~~ stuff  
3 ring  
4\. propposal  
**  
Step one was decently archivable. Before coming to St. Louis to spend the offseason with the Tkachuks, they had spent a week of their summer break with Leon's family in Cologne. They had explored the city Leon grew up in and he shared a lot about his childhood with Matthew while they were there. He hadn't been there for more than a few short weeks since he was a teenager, but Cologne would always hold a special spot in his heart. Before long, they were flying out to the house in Spain and spending another week soaking up the sun there. During all that time they spent with Leon's family, it was easy to steal a moment with just his parents and Kim to talk about his plans for the future. They were excited for him and even more excited to officially add Matthew to the family; thankfully nobody cried. They have always been on the same wavelength and he is glad that they don't make it a big deal because he knows the second he sits down and truly thinks about everything he will be a nervous wreck. Which is why he is definitely not thinking about how he is minutes away from technically asking Keith Tkachuk if he could marry his son.  
  
He can hear Taryn absolutely destroy Brady at some game in the background, their playful swears filling up the backyard. The first year or so of dating Matthew, his sister had ambushed him and roped him into teaching her a new German swear word every time they met, but it was hard to make out if she was using any in their scruffle. Leon had learned a long time ago that this was just normal background noise in the Tkachuk household and that it was nothing more than friendly competition and sibling rivalry. He wasn't even sure what they were playing, badminton maybe? Leon was laying on the patio lounger with Matt, leaning back with his boyfriend cuddled up close. He was contemplating how sappy it would be if he pressed a kiss to Matthew's forehead. None of the Tkachuks were around which means there would only be minimal teasing from Matt. Before he could overthink it, he leaned down and gave him a quick kiss near his hairline. His curls tickled Leon's skin, and he could see that Matthew was about to respond when Chantal poked out from the house. "Kids, can somebody come help me in the kitchen please?" Her voice carried through the yard, obviously well versed in getting the attention from her family. Brady and Taryn just continued playing their game in their corner of the backyard so Leon was about to get up to help her when Matt pushed him back down into his seat. "You stay here, I'll go help mom." He smiled down at Leon before turning around and following his mother back into the house while Leon tried to calm down the butterflies in his stomach. Leon just sat there for a moment before it dawned on him that he was alone with Keith now. The older man was trying to set up an overly complicated looking grill at the moment and Leon realized that now might be the only good chance to talk to him without the other Tkachuks mingling. He waited a few more moments before getting up from where he was sitting on the patio. He took a few deep breaths before he walked over to his boyfriend's father just to put off this conversation a few seconds more. Thankfully, Keith noticed Leon approaching so at least the awkward act of trying to get his attention was resolved.  
  
"Uhm... Mr. Tkachuk," he began, "Do you have a minute to talk?"  
  
"Of course son. Stop with the Mr. Tkachuk nonsense though, you know you can call me Keith." He chuckled a bit but that didn't help Leon feel any calmer.  
  
Leon straightened up a bit more, trying to calm his nerves. "I know and I'm very grateful for that but it feels like ‘Mr. Tkachuk’ might be more appropriate for this conversation sir." The switch in the atmosphere was almost instantaneous. Leon could see the way Keith reacted from the way his posture changed along with his general vibe. It was scary to see him go from Keith to _Keith Tkachuk_ and Leon knew that if they had ran into each other on the ice he'd be done for.  
  
He had turned away from the grill and was focusing all his attention on Leon now. "What's going on son?"  
  
His voice sounded suspicious, and Leon truly hoped that he wouldn't fuck this up.  
  
Leon's tongue felt heavy in his mouth. He'd been in North America for over a decade at this point, but suddenly English felt so foreign to him and he was struggling to talk. "I... I know that here, I mean in America, it's a tradition to ask, not that I think that Matt is a bride, but usually you ask the father and I thought... because I want to ask and be respectful but I also don't want to disrespect anybody and like assume." He was seriously rambling at this point but when he looked up from the ground he could see Keith smiling. Maybe he wasn't fucking this up as badly as he thought.  
  
Keith looked at him encouragingly. "Leon. It's okay, just spit it out."  
  
"Do you think Matthew would like to get married?" He said before he could change his mind. "To me." He added. "In the future."  
  
Keith put a hand on Leon's shoulder, the small gesture making him feel grounded again. A very fatherly shoulder pat. "Leon... Matthew loves you so much. I know I'm not the most sentimental guy, but you make my son happy and that makes me happy. And if you want to continue to make him happy for the rest of your lives then I think he'd be on board with it." He patted his shoulder twice before turning back to the grill. "And I know you didn't ask, but the two of you have my blessings."  
  
"I love him so much, sir." Leon said from beside him. "I know ultimately Matt is his own person and in the end it's only him that can make this decision but I know your opinion matters a lot to him and having your approval means a lot to me."  
  
Keith seemed to be focussed on his grill again, so Leon thought about going inside and helping Chantal and Matthew out. He made a quick stop at the seating area again. His nerves were slowly catching up with him and his knees felt weak, so he sat down to send a quick text message back home to his family in Germany. His parents were probably already asleep but he couldn't keep this to himself; he was way too excited. He was glad that he had already talked to his parents and sister so he had somebody to talk to about the things that were happening.  
  
By the time he had finished typing out the paragraphs on Whatsapp, Matthew was coming back outside. He was wiping his damp hands on his pants and Leon's heart fluttered in his chest before trying to calm down a little bit. Leon's hands were still sweaty from nervousness, but his boyfriend basically throwing himself onto him was always a welcome distraction.  
  
"Hi." Matthew brought his face up to Leon's, nearly headbutting into him.  
  
Leon just moved his head a little, gently holding his forehead to Matthew's so that their noses were only millimeters apart. "Hi."  
  
Matthew started giggling, and he couldn't help but join. He completely missed it when Matt closed the distance between them but the kiss he received was more than welcome. Just a small peck since they were still very much in the middle of the Tkachuk backyard, but he'd never not want to kiss Matt.  
  
There was a crash coming from the end of the backyard Matt's younger siblings were currently wreaking havoc in, followed by two loud voices yelling "It wasn't me!" in unison. Matt just chuckled. "Want to go join Taryn and Brady?" Another quick kiss.  
  
"Only if I can be on a team with Taryn." Leon smiled.  
  
Matt was already starting to run towards his siblings by the time he yelled out "race you," to Leon who was left behind on the lounger for a second before everything registered for him, and he took off after Matthew.

**Author's Note:**

> quick summary:  
> Leon and Matthew are in a loving long term relationship  
> they have the full support from their families (the league or teammates aren't mentioned).  
> Leon wants to propose and is nervous  
> he talks to Keith about it who offers him support  
> open ending
> 
> also this is the first player/player piece i've written in nearly three years so i hope you'll like it


End file.
